And he called them by name, saying: Ye shall call on the Father in my name, in mighty prayer; and after ye have done this ye shall have power that to him upon whom ye shall lay your hands, ye shall give the Holy Ghost; and in my name shall ye give it, for thus do mine apostles.
When Christ ordained his twelve special Nephite disciples, he gave them authority, but he added instructions that to exercise that authority with power, they had to pray.
Authority and power are not synonymous. Authority is the right to do something; power is the ability to do it. We get our abilities from God. The enabling power of God is called grace. We must pray for grace, as we would for any worthwhile gift. God gives marvelous gifts, but only when we ask.
Neither can the asking be casual or occasional. The disciples, with all their authority and witness, still needed to exercise "mighty prayer." Mighty prayer is the kind of prayer we offer when we know we are totally dependent on God's grace and no other help is available. In a mighty prayer we say, "Lord, it is you or nothing. I have nowhere else to go and no one else to lean on. Whatever you do is good, and so, give me whatever is good. Just don't leave me alone."
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